Residents protest Indah Kiat's waste

Multa Fidrus, The Jakarta Post, Tangerang

Residents who live close to the Rawa Kucing dumping site in the Neglasari subdistrict of Tangerang expressed serious concern about the effects of polluted air from the solid waste being disposed there by the Tangerang regency's sanitation agency.

"The waste, which produces such a bad smell, really disturbs us -- we've had to inhale household waste every day, and now we are facing even worse smells which could cause disease," Achmadi, a local resident, told The Jakarta Post.

Achmadi added that the municipal administration needed to take stern measures against a factory that dumped the waste at the site.

According to an official of the Tangerang municipality's sanitation agency, the waste left there belonged to PT Indah Kiat, a pulp and paper producing company on Jl. Raya Serpong kilometer 8, Tangerang.

"We have received reports from the municipal irrigation agency which said that they had caught an agency truck disposing of solid waste belonging to PT Indah Kiat on Feb. 3," said the official, speaking on anonymity.

He said only household waste was allowed to be disposed at the dumping site.

However, Hardjono, an official the municipal environment agency office, said that his office had yet to receive reports about factory waste at the disposal, so that the agency could not take stern measure against the company and regency sanitation's executive unit.

"If you want to know more about the matter, please go and ask the municipal public work agency," Hardjono, who is also chairman of Tangerang environmental law enforcement team told the Post.

Separately, PT Indah Kiat spokesman Luffy Prakuncoro denied that the company was disposing of solid waste at Rawa Kucing dumping site.

He said that, in handling the factory's 20 tons of waste produced daily, the company had cooperated with the Tangerang regency sanitation's satlak, which should recycle the waste into fertilizer, in accordance with agreement with PT Indah Kiat.